James Parker Brady Sells 15,136 Shares of Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) Stock

Ardelyx, Inc. (NASDAQ:ARDX) insider James Parker Brady sold 15,136 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.86, for a total transaction of $58,424.96. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 245,930 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $949,289.80. The trade was a 5.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Ardelyx Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:ARDX opened at $3.83 on Thursday. Ardelyx, Inc. has a one year low of $3.72 and a one year high of $8.40. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $4.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $954.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.41 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 3.34 and a quick ratio of 3.15.

Ardelyx (NASDAQ:ARDX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.02). Ardelyx had a negative net margin of 12.35% and a negative return on equity of 36.00%. The company had revenue of $120.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $121.03 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.08) earnings per share. Ardelyx’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ardelyx, Inc. will post -0.2 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ARDX shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on Ardelyx in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $16.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Ardelyx from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $9.00 price target on shares of Ardelyx in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Ardelyx from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, BTIG Research reduced their price objective on shares of Ardelyx from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ardelyx has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.90.

Trending Headlines about Ardelyx

Here are the key news stories impacting Ardelyx this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Institutional interest provides a supportive signal. BlackRock, Jupiter Topco and AIGH Capital Management reportedly initiated positions, while Bank of America and State Street increased their holdings. Institutions and hedge funds own approximately 58.9% of Ardelyx.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains broadly favorable, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $13.90. Piper Sandler, HC Wainwright, Citigroup and TD Cowen continue to maintain positive ratings, although several have reduced their targets.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data showed zero shares short and a zero-day days-to-cover ratio, but the report also described the figure as a “large increase.” The internally inconsistent data makes this an unreliable trading signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Eight Ardelyx insiders sold a combined 126,059 shares for approximately $486,588 at an average price of $3.86 on August 21. The transactions included CEO Michael Raab, CFO Susan Hohenleitner and other company insiders; each seller retained a substantial position, but the broad-based selling may weigh on sentiment. Ardelyx insider selling report
• Negative Sentiment: Investors purchased 11,731 put options on Ardelyx, about 328% above the average daily volume of 2,743 contracts. The activity suggests increased hedging or bearish speculation, though it does not necessarily indicate a change in the company’s fundamentals. Ardelyx put options report

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardelyx

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARDX. Knott David M Jr purchased a new position in shares of Ardelyx during the first quarter valued at about $1,240,000. AIGH Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ardelyx in the second quarter worth about $16,320,000. Rubric Capital Management LP bought a new position in Ardelyx during the first quarter valued at approximately $11,147,000. Clay Northam Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ardelyx during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,704,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Ardelyx by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,979,483 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $110,650,000 after buying an additional 610,162 shares during the last quarter. 58.92% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ardelyx

Ardelyx, Inc (NASDAQ: ARDX) is a clinical‐stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering, developing and commercializing targeted small molecule drugs for cardio‐renal and gastrointestinal diseases. The company’s lead marketed product, tenapanor (sold under the brand name XPHOZAH in the United States), is approved for the treatment of hyperphosphatemia in patients with chronic kidney disease on dialysis. Ardelyx’s proprietary approach targets epithelial transporters in the gastrointestinal tract, offering localized activity with limited systemic exposure.

Beyond tenapanor, Ardelyx’s development pipeline includes treatments designed to address other complications in kidney disease and related metabolic disorders.